Blast director for fluid streams



Feb. 21, 1956 w. c. WALKER BLAST DIRECTOR FOR FLUID STREAMS Filed Sept.8. 1950 INVENTOR. -/1 '///'a/72 G ha/ker United States Patent BLASTDIRECTOR FOR FLUID STREAMS William c. Walker, Granite City, in.

Application September 8, 1950, Serial No. 183,756

4 Claims. (Cl. 60-355) The invention relates to the use of fluid underrelatively high pressure to entrain a greater quantity of fluid underrelatively low pressure to react against a mass of the lattermentionedfluid to effect propulsion of a vehicle through the mass.

The main object of the invention is to utilize a blast director toobtain a relatively large and effective discharge of a stream of mixedmotive and entrained fluid, such as steam and water, or gas and air.Another object is to effectively deliver a stream of the motive fluid tothe director transversely of the direction of flow of the entrainedfluid and, at the same time, effect substantially equal distribution ofthe entrained fluid about the axis of the director and withoutundesirable interference by the conduit for the motor fluid.

The invention includes a series of concentric cylinders, one within theother, alternate spaces between the cylinders forming motive fluiddischarge chambers and the other spaces forming through passages for theentrained fluid, there being a conduit for the motive fluid extendingthrough the cylinders transversely of their axis with outlets to themotive fluid passages.

Preferably the invention comprises two units of cylinders, as describedabove, arranged substantially end to end but with their cylinders of oneunit being offset radially of the cylinders of the other unit.

It is another object to construct and assemble such units simply andeffectively into a single complete structure which may be applied to avehicle for propulsion purposes.

These and other detailed objects of the invention are attained by thestructure illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a vertical, longitudinal, central section through a blastdirector.

Figures 2 and 3 are vertical transverse sections taken on the lines 22and 33 respectively, of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a horizontal section taken on the line 44 of Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a detailed horizontal section taken approximately on anarcuate line 555 of Figure 2 to show elements of Figure 7 in sectionthroughout their length.

Figure 6 is a detailed elevation of the positioning plates for thecylinders shown before assembly with each other.

Figure 7 is a detail of one of the baffle plates used in the motivefluid chambers.

The device embodies a primary director unit A which receives the motivefluid and entrains what may be considered a series of streams of thesurrounding fluid and discharges them into a secondary unit B whichserves as a director for an additional quantity of entrained fluid. UnitA could be used independently of unit B but their assembly is thepreferred arrangement.

Unit A (Figures 1-5) consists of a series of concentric cylinders 1, 2,3, 4, 5, 6, each succeeding cylinder being of increased diameter andenclosing the next smaller cylinder. Cylinder 1 is open from end to endof the unit; a closure 7 extends between the right-hand ends ofcylinders 2,735,261 Patented Feb. 21, 1956 1 and 2. The space C betweencylinders 2 and 3 is open from end to end of the unit. A closure 8extends between the right-hand ends of cylinders 3 and 4, being inclinedto facilitate the flow of the surrounding fluid into the open cylinders.This inclination is shown more abrupt than in actual use because of thereduced scale of the drawings, but it will be understood the inclinationof the ends will be adapted for the intended purpose. The space Dbetween cylinders 4 and 5 is open from end to end of the unit. A closure9 extends between the right-hand ends of cylinders 5 and 6.

Positioning plates 10, 11, 12 are slotted as indicated at 13, Figure 6,to receive pairs of adjacent cylinders 1 and 2, 3 and 4, and 5 and 6,and will be secured to the cylinders by welding or otherwise to holdthem in spaced relation.

The spaces E between the cylinders connected by closures 7, 8 and 9 maybe called motive fluid discharge passages and preferably their crosssection areas are substantially smaller than the areas of the throughspaces C, D, E within cylinder 1 and between cylinders 2 and 3 andcylinders 4 and 5.

An impulse fluid conduit 14 extends transversely through the unit,preferably near the unit end adjacent to closures 7, 8, and 9 and isprovided with lateral discharge openings 15 leading into the motivefluid passages E. Quadrant-like baffles 16 extend from the mid-point ofeach opening 15 forwardly and downwardly to insure the distribution ofapproximately half of the motive fluid passing through that opening tothe lower portion of the discharged passage.

Preferably conduit 14 is flattened transversely of the unit to presentsharply inclined surfaces to the streams of entrained fluid,facilitating its passage through the unit with minimum turbulence.

Unit B comprises a series of cylinders 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, arrangedsimilarly to the arrangement of cylinders in unit A but of differentdiameters. Inner cylinder 17 is of larger diameter than cylinder 2 ofunit A; cylinder 18 is of smaller diameter than cylinder 3 of unit A;cylinder 19 is of larger diameter than cylinder 4 of unit A; cylinder 20is of smaller diameter than cylinder 5 of unit A; cylinder 21 is oflarger diameter than cylinder 6 of unit A; and cylinder 22 is of stilllarger diameter and substantially longer, forming a discharge shell forthe combined motive and entrained fluids. The arrows X indicate the flowof fluids.

The cylinders of unit B are positioned relative to each other by plates23, 24, 25 corresponding generally to plates 10, 11, 12, having deepslots 26 to receive individually spaced cylinders of unit B. The platesare not slotted for the ends of the cylinders in unit A, but terminateat the ends of those cylinders. Plates 10, 11, 12, and 23, 24, and 25are overlapped at 27 and welded together to form a rigid unit. Plates23, 24, and 25 have their left-hand edges inclined from the axis of theunit to its outer periphery.

With this construction, steam, or other motive fluid, is admittedthrough conduit 14 and passes through outlets 15 into the restricteddischarge passages E between the cylinders of unit A and the dischargeof this motive fluid through annular outlets at the left-hand end ofunit A entrains a quantity of fluid through the other annular passagesC, D between the unit cylinders. As the motive fluid is discharged fromunit A, it expands into the outer annular passages therefor in unit Badding further impetus to the entrained fluid, the flow of which ismaintained in a direction parallel to the length of the units with aminimum of turbulence due the cylinders of unit B. The extension of thedischarge shell 22 directs the combined annular streams of motive andentrained fluid into the surrounding fluid to effect a forceful reactiontending centric substantially straight-sided a nnularchambers ofprogressively larger diameters, said units being arranged substantiallyend to end With the Walls of the chambers of one unit disaligned withthe Walls of thechambers of theotherunigand a conduit for conveyinga-b1ast= to allof the chambers ofone unit near the endof the latterremote from the other unit and directing the discharge from-saidconduittowards the other unit.

2. Ina fluid blast director, atprimary unit structure and: a-secondaryunit structure, each comprising aseriesof concentric cylinders, onewithin the other, and spaced apart to form annular chambers betweensuccessive cylindersextending the full lengthof the respectivestructure,

the. two unit structures being spaced substantially end-toeudzand thecylinders of one structure being-offset radially from: the? cylinders ofthe other structure, closures for alternate chambers at the outer endofeach cylinder of the primary structure, and a conduit extendingtransversely of the cylinders of said primary structure with outletsinto the chambers provided with said'closures;

3; A fluid blast director as described in claim 1' which includes platesextending lengthwise of each unit and holding. the chamber walls inspaced relation, the adjacent ends of. the plates of the two units beingconnected to each other.

4. In a blast director, a structure comprising a series of concentriccylinders, onewithintheother, and spaced.

apart to form annular chambers between successive cylinders, extendingsubstantially the full length of the cylinders, a closure at one end ofsaid structure for the chamber between each cylinder and one adjacentcylinder, the alternate chambers forming through passages from end toend of the structure, a}n1otive fluid conduit extending laterallythrough the cylinders with openings into the chambers provided-With aclosure, and-bafile elements extending through the upper halfn ofthechambers provided with a closure, said bafile elements beingpositioned between the openings in theunotive-fluidconduit and the openends of said chambers.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS lmir:-Ir- :"z:.:-.-=- r- 387,117 Murphy July 31, 1888- 467,427 McQlave.Jan. 19, 1892' 6,36 ,953; Chapmana c Nov. 14, 1899 1,362,997 KolerofiDec. 21, 1920 2,165,889; Arlcinepal. July 11, 1939 2 1 2. M fl tn---1--?-.-- D 1 2,564,671 Brown; Aug. 21, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 148,905Austria Mar. 10, 1937 584E685 France Nov. 24, 1924 Great Britain Nov.17, 1909

